Guests get to check out the new Xbox One at the Microsoft Store with Chicago Bulls Legend Scottie Pippen at The Shops at North Bridge on Nov. 23, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo : Getty Images for Microsoft/Tasos Katopodis)
If a recent revelation by AMD CEO Lisa Su is to be believed, fans can expect Xbox One.5 (or possibly the Xbox Two) sooner than the fans expect.
AMD actually let the cat out of the bag at its recent earnings call when Su said that the company's increased revenue estimate was based on three upcoming semi-custom system-on-chips (SOC), which were related to the "semi-custom business and gaming." She confirmed that these SOCs were meant for a new console or different consoles, Ars Technica reported.
According to the report, Su's reference to the new console may possibly be the Nintendo NX, which is expected to be launched in 2017. AMD has already announced that it is currently working on its chipset. The "different consoles" Su referred to could possibly be the now confirmed PlayStation 4.5 and the Xbox One upgrade.
The AMD CEO has claimed that production on one of these chips has already begun. This has raised the fans' expectations, who are speculating that all the three new gaming consoles may arrive by 2017.
However, as far as the Xbox upgrade or Xbox Two is concerned, the pattern followed by Microsoft for Xbox releases does not offer any clues as to when the fans can expect the Xbox Two. For instance, the original Xbox was released in November 2001, while a much improved and sleeker console, Xbox 360, arrived in May 2005, followed by the current-gen Xbox One in November 2013.
Going by this pattern, one can only expect the fully fledged Xbox Two to hit the market sometime 2021. But considering the declining sales of the Xbox One and the time lapse between the release of the original Xbox and the Xbox 360, it can be assumed that the next update, Xbox One.5 or Xbox Two, will come in 2017, instead of a gap of eight years since the launch of Xbox One, Alphr reported.
While current online rumors suggest that the next Xbox upgrade launch could be in 2017, even GameStop COO Tony Bartel has hinted that the Redmond-headquartered tech titan may release a new console this year. Speaking at a GameStop event, Bartel said that his company is happy to see the introduction of VR and rumors regarding new console launches, some of which appear to be in the offing.
Bartel did not mention the obvious regarding an Xbox update coming soon, but Xbox head Phil Spencer has tried to dispel rumors pertaining to an incremental Xbox update. In a recent interview with Game Informer, he said, "I'm not a big fan of Xbox One and a half. If we're going to move forward, I want to move forward in big numbers."
Watch the video on Xbox Two concept design below:
